Method and apparatus for preparation of granulated material

Abstract

An apparatus for preparing samples of granulated material comprises an upper vessel having a floor including a plurality of planks, slots between each plank, and an open ceiling to allow passing of homogenized material, a lower vessel under the upper vessel and having a plurality of division plates that fit in the slots and form a plurality of compartments which hold samples, a feeder which oscillates over the upper surface of the upper vessel to render a homogenised and representative sample. The method comprises positioning the lower vessel under the upper vessel, feeding material to be sampled through the feeder by an oscillating movement, raising the lower vessel such that the division plates partition the heap of material to form a plurality of samples, removing planks from the upper vessel, thus forcing the plurality of samples to fall toward the compartments, and separating both the vessels to remove the samples.

1. An apparatus for preparing samples of granulated material comprising:
 an upper vessel which has a floor consisting of a plurality of planks each of them with a slot between therein, and the ceiling of the upper vessel is open as to allow passing of homogenized material; 
 a lower vessel arranged under the upper vessel wherein the lower vessel has inside therein a plurality of division plates which are taller in height than the walls of the lower vessel; wherein said division plates fit in the slots of the upper vessel; wherein the division plates form within the lower vessel a plurality of compartments that will hold the plurality of samples; and 
 a feeder which has an oscillating movement over the upper surface of the upper vessel and which movement and speed had been previously computed as to ensure rendering of a homogenised and representative sample as per the method of Chevron. 
 
     
     
       2. The apparatus according to  claim 1  wherein the lower vessel is arranged under the upper vessel and the upper portion of the division plates is positioned within the slots leveled with the floor of the upper vessel in a way that the upper vessel can receive the material fed by the feeder. 
     
     
       3. The apparatus according to  claim 2  wherein the feeder completes an oscillating movement above the open ceiling of the upper vessel. 
     
     
       4. The apparatus according to  claim 1  wherein within each compartment it is possible to arrange a vessel of the same size of the compartment, wherein said vessel is used for removal of the samples from the apparatus. 
     
     
       5. The apparatus according to  claim 1  wherein the floor of the lower vessel can consist of gates which, when open allow the samples to fall over any vessel for storage and transport purposes. 
     
     
       6. A method for preparing samples of granulated material comprising the steps of:
 providing an upper vessel which has a floor consisting of a plurality of planks each of them with a slot between therein, and the ceiling of the upper vessel is open as to allow passing of homogenized material; 
 providing a lower vessel which is located under the upper vessel wherein the lower vessel has inside therein a plurality of division plates which are taller in height than the walls of the lower vessel; wherein said division plates fit in the slots of the upper vessel; wherein the division plates form within the lower vessel a plurality of compartments that will hold the plurality of samples; 
 providing a feeder which has an oscillating movement over the upper surface of the upper vessel and which movement and speed had been previously computed as to ensure rendering of a homogenised and representative sample as per the method of Chevron; 
 positioning of the lower vessel under the upper vessel wherein, the upper portion of the division plates is positioned within the slots at the level of the floor of the upper vessel in a way that the upper vessel can receive the material fed by the feeder; 
 feeding the material to sample through the feeder by an oscillating movement wherein the movement and speed of the feeder have been calculated previously; 
 forming a heap of Chevron within the upper vessel; 
 raising the lower vessel in a way that the division plates partition the heap of the material as to form a plurality of the samples; 
 removing the plurality of planks from the upper vessel thus making the plurality of samples fall toward the compartments of the lower vessel as to store the partitioned heaps; and 
 separating both the upper and lower vessel as to remove the samples and have them ready for further analysis and/or storage.